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Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Recommended Reading List - Civil War in Desert Southwest (1861-1862)

A number of good books on the subject have surfaced recently, so I decided to revisit my reading list of recommended books dealing with the early war period in the desert Southwest, specifically the Confederate invasion of New Mexico and the U.S. government's response.

Ammianus,Keying in on the strictly CW-related, "The Battle at Valley's Ranch: First Account of the Gettysburg of the West" by Simmons is one I've yet to come across. Not surprising, given that it's a locally published booklet. Did you find it worthwhile?

Hi again Drew et al (nice tie Al),A great little book on my list is the forgotten, "My Life with the Army in the West: Memoirs of James E. Farmer." It reads like Little Big Man; Farmer ran away from home, campaign with the pre-ACW Army, played with Longstreet's kids, met Kit Carson, traveled to DC and met Lincoln,etc...and as a washed up janitor told his story for a few bucks late in life. Fascinating. Discovered a small press version on one of our Santa Fe trips. Regards, A